Sunday, January 02, 2005

Religious Racists

Mention civil liberties and the Patriot Act to most conservatives, invariably the response you will get is "whose rights have been violated?"

That's not the point. The point is the potential for rights to be violated. If you want to test this theory out, start checking out lots of books about Osama bin Laden, or Al-Qaeda, from your local public library and see how long it takes for the FBI to get in touch with you.

God help you if you are a Muslim in the United States.

In a recent poll conducted by Cornell University, a staggering 44% of Americans supported curtailing the rights of Muslim Americans.

Yes, Americans. American citizens.

Quick: guess which group was more likely to support limiting the rights of Muslims: liberals, or religious (Christian) Republicans?

If you guessed Republicans, give yourself a tax cut! (And make sure to check out this piece of Christian literature from Jack Chick, called "The Little Bride.")

Yes, our good friends, that group of compassionate individuals who just hate it when liberals suggest they might be racist, are more likely to support a form of institutionalized racism than liberals.

The survey also showed that respondents who were more likely to watch television news supported limits to Muslim civil rights. Or, in other words, people who watch Fox News regularly support limiting the rights of Muslims.

It's beginning to feel like Germany, circa 1940.

27% of respondents favored requiring Muslims to register with the federal government whenever they moved to a new address. 29% supported the infiltration of Muslim civic groups and volunteer organization by federal agents to keep tabs on members of those groups.